Magna Carta timeline | Date | Event | |--------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6 February 1214 | King John sails for La Rochelle to begin a military campaign against the French. Many of his barons refuse to accompany him, or send knights to serve in his army. | | June-July 1214 | John’s barons from Poitou (France) desert his army. With his path blocked by the French Prince Louis, John is unable to join his allies in Flanders, and is forced to retreat to La Rochelle. | | 27 July 1214 | King John’s allies, the Flemings, Germans and an English contingent led by the earl of Salisbury, are defeated by the French at the Battle of Bouvines (Northern France). | | October 1214 | John returns to England following the failure of his military campaign in France that he had spent years planning. | | 4 March 1215 | Facing baronial revolt, John declares his intention to go on crusade to the Holy Land. It is hoped that this will secure support from the Pope against his rebellious barons. | | 5 May 1215 | The barons renounce their fealty (allegiance) to John, and name Robert fitz Walter as their leader. | | 17 May 1215 | The city of London welcomes the rebel barons, dashing John’s hopes for a quick victory and end to the civil war. | | 10 June 1215 | John meets the rebel leaders at Runnymede meadow by the River Thames near Staines. | | 15 June 1215 | King John sets his seal to a draft of Magna Carta, thereby accepting its terms. | | 19 June 1215 | The rebel barons formally make peace with King John, and renew their allegiance. | | 7 July 1215 | The pope excommunicates the barons who have rebelled against their king. | | 24-25 August 1215 | Papal bulls (letters) declare Magna Carta null and void. | | September 2015 | Civil war breaks out between King John and the rebel barons. | | 16 October 1216 | King John dies at Newark. | | 28 October 1216 | Henry III is crowned king of England at Gloucester. | | 12 November 1216 | Magna Carta is reissued, with some changes to its contents, by royal government on behalf of the young Henry III. | | 6 November 1217 | A third version of Magna Carta is issued. All laws relating to the administration of royal forests (which cover around a third of all land in England), are issued in a separate charter: the Charter of the Forest. | | Summer 1224 | The French King invades the territories of Henry III in Poitou and Gascony. | | Date | Event | |------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------| | 11 February 1225 | Henry III ‘confirms’ Magna Carta and the Charter of the Forest. This means that he reaffirms his intention to govern England in accordance with the laws contained in the charters. | | 1254 | Henry III arranges with the pope that his son, Edmund, should become king of Sicily. He agrees to pay £90,000 to the pope, but parliament refuses to raise the sum. | | 1258 | The pope threatens to excommunicate Henry III if he does not pay £90,000 to the papacy. Henry III had promised this sum so that his son could become king of Sicily. | | June 1258 | Henry III desperately seeks advice from his barons concerning the £90,000 he owes to the pope. Henry’s barons agree to help their king, if he agrees to accept major political reforms. Discussions take place at the ‘Mad Parliament’ held at Oxford. | | June-July 1258 | Henry agrees to the Provisions of Oxford. The king is forced to rule with the advice of a council. It is also decided that parliament should meet three times a year to review political developments. | | October 1259 | Henry agrees to the Provision of Westminster, a series of twenty-four major legal reforms similar to Magna Carta in their scope and importance. | | 29 April 1261 | The pope condemns the reforms that have been forced upon Henry III. All barons in England are absolved from any oaths they have taken to ensure that the reforms are upheld. | | 14 May 1264 | Simon de Montfort and the rebel barons defeat a royal army at the battle of Lewes, taking King Henry III captive. Simon de Montfort is now the unofficial ruler of England. | | January 1265 | Simon de Montfort calls a parliament to discuss the terms for the king’s release. He orders knights from each of England’s shires, and representatives from England’s towns, to attend. | | 4 August 1265 | King Henry III defeats Simon de Montfort and the rebels at the battle of Evesham. Simon de Montfort is killed, marking an end to the reform movement that had begun in 1258. | | 30 October 1266 | Dictum of Kenilworth marks the royalist recovery, but in a manner of reconciliation. Many of the reforms issued since 1258 are now issued in the name of the king. | | 16 November 1272 | Henry III dies, and is succeeded by his son, King Edward I. | | 1294 | King Philip IV of France declares Edward I’s territories in Gascony forfeit, because Edward refused to attend the French court up following a summons by Philip. War breaks out between England and France. | | Date | Event | |--------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7 July 1297 | Two important barons, Roger Bigod and Humphrey de Bohun, refused Edward I’s order to draw up a muster list – those summoned by the king for military service. The king was forced to offer wages for military service, instead of relying on feudal obligations. | | 30 July 1297 | Royal writs (instructions) order the collection of tax set at a very high rate. The king falsely claimed that the tax had been granted with the assent of the whole laity of the realm. In reality, the king ordered the collection of a tax without the assent of parliament. | | 22 August 1297 | Roger Bigod and Humphrey de Bohun appeared at the exchequer – which managed the kingdom’s finances – and stated that the people of England would not pay the tax. | | October 1297 | The king’s ‘bad’ tax was cancelled, and replaced with a new tax, which was set at a lower rate and properly granted by parliament. | | March 1300 | Edward I confirmed Magna Carta, and agreed to a new set of political reforms put forward by the rebel barons in a document known as ‘Articuli super cartas’, which means ‘Articles in addition to Magna Carta and the Charter of the Forest’. This document set out in detail how Magna Carta could be enforced to prevent the king from breaking its laws. | | 1 January 1306 | The pope condemns the ‘Articuli super cartas’, releasing Edward I from his obligation to follow the rules set out in this new document. |